Little Big Soldier (Blu-ray)

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All Rise...

Sadly, Judge Clark Douglas does not have any amusing love/hate relationships.

The Charge

An unlikely duo confronted by danger!

The Case

Ever since the massive success of Rush
Hour, buddy comedies have been the bread and butter of Jackie Chan's
American work. We've not only been treated to Rush Hour 2 and Rush Hour 3, but also to Shanghai Noon, Shanghai Knights,
The Forbidden Kingdom, and Around the World in 80 Days.
Most of this material has been pleasantly forgettable stuff; mediocre writing
and direction occasionally elevated by Chan's gift for physical comedy. While
Chan has attempted more ambitious dramatic roles in his home country in recent
years (most of which haven't been well received), the comedy/drama Little Big
Soldier dips into the old buddy comedy well to modestly satisfying
effect.

Our story concerns a cowardly soldier (Jackie Chan) who flees from a battle
and later finds himself surveying a field of dead bodies. Amidst the corpses he
finds the opposing army's wounded but still alive general (Leehom Wang, Lust, Caution), which is a very thrilling
discovery indeed: the general can undoubtedly be turned in for a large cash
reward. As you might expect, the two spend a good deal of time arguing during
the first few days of their time together. As you might also expect, they slowly
start to warm up to each after a while and soon begin to contemplate the notion
of being allies. Before long, it becomes clear that the two men will need each
other a great deal in order to survive.

It's clear where the story is going within mere moments, as the film
foreshadows Chan's inevitable change-of-heart toward his captive in a cutesy
manner and establishes that we're in for a warm n' fuzzy cinematic bonding
session. Fortunately, the journey is reasonably entertaining and Chan reminds us
of why he can be such an appealing screen presence (a much-needed reminder given
some of his recent work—The Spy
Next Door, anyone?). There's a bit of playful bite to some of the comic
fussing, such as the scene in which the soldier cheerfully antagonizes the
general by repeatedly sticking his finger inside a wound on the general's leg.
The general responds to this with some amusing slapstick, raising his leg and
opening his mouth in pain in hilariously mechanical fashion.

The characters are easy to like, and we do genuinely care about them by the
time they get caught up in some dramatic business during the third act. Some
additional suspense is brought by the general's forces, who don't want to save
their leader but rather to rid themselves of his moderate, reasonable leadership
in order to pursue their own sadistic goals. Meanwhile, the soldier worries that
his story won't hold up when he eventually turns the general in and that his
army will realize that he fled from the battle. Eventually, the two men come to
the realization that they're going to have to live with each other or not at
all.

Chan's slowing down in the action department in his old age (many of this
film's biggest action moments are handled by younger actors engaged in assorted
conflicts), but he still manages to deliver a generous amount of enjoyable
physical comedy throughout. Though you won't see him bouncing off quite as many
walls, there's still an undeniably Keaton-like grace to Chan's elegant
clumsiness.

The film has been a passion project of Chan's for decades, which is kind of
surprising when you consider that it's little more than a charming buddy movie.
At one point, Chan was supposed to play the young general, but as he aged it
became clear that he would have to play the soldier. It worked out perfectly in
the end, as the soldier role feels like it was written for Chan to begin with
(the general is a much quieter, less active character whose development is
considerably more internal). The film concludes in startling dramatic territory,
but otherwise this is a role that covers agreeably familiar territory for the
actor (the film isn't serious enough to feel a need to skip the usual blooper
reel that plays over the end credits).

Little Big Soldier arrives on Blu-ray sporting a handsome
1080p/2.35:1 transfer. The film's attractive cinematography is quite pleasant to
behold in hi-def, and the level of detail is exceptional throughout. The picture
is a bit desaturated and grainy at times, but that's entirely intentional. The
film's muted palette benefits from strong shading (despite a bit of black crush
here and there), and has an overcast look despite the fact that most of it takes
place in broad daylight. Audio is strong as well, with the handful of action
sequences managing to stir up a modest thunderstorm of sorts. Dialogue is clean
and clear, and the engaging (if occasionally too silly) score comes through with
strength. In the supplemental department, you get a 14-minute EPK-style
featurette, a music video starring Chan (!) and a pair of trailers for the
film.

While Little Big Soldier may not be the intensely moving and
entertaining cinematic experience Chan was striving for, it's a nice little
movie that fans of the actor will find an enjoyable change-of-pace.